


The Den

by Domina_Stellarum



Category: Gotham (TV)
Genre: Confessions of love, Drug Mentions, It’s more of snippet, M/M, accidental drug consumption, also a bit of fluff, but like it’s not my strong point so like I really do mean minor, gobblepot, look guys I don’t know shit about drugs okay I used the internet, minor smut
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-13
Updated: 2018-01-13
Packaged: 2019-03-04 04:46:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,659
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13356801
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Domina_Stellarum/pseuds/Domina_Stellarum
Summary: Trying to track down an illegal drug ring Jim enlists the help of Oswald who in turn arranges a meeting with Gotham’s top narcotics dealer, the only catch is the location: a lavish club which might be home to more than one type of illicit activity.





	The Den

This is a drug den?” Jim whispered as soon as the hostess disappeared back through the intricate doorway he had just stepped through. Jim and his companion stood in the entranceway to a very spacious and very modern looking club. Sofas and small booths covered both walls, with a few tables scattered around the open room. Settled into the back of the club was a small but expensively stocked bar. In a lot of ways it reminded Jim of Oswald's club. However, the dim lighting gave the space a sense of intimacy that Jim couldn't quite wrap his head around; on one hand, hopefully no one would be able to recognize him, on the other hand it made him feel extremely out of place. 

“Yes. Not all of us spend our time passed out in alleyways. Now shh!” Oswald whispered back. He scanned the room slowly, apparently trying to find his informant amongst the crowd. He sighed and tried to slip into the sea of people. 

“Us?” Jim gasped. He latched onto Oswald's sleeve and forced the man to stop short. 

“Shush!” Oswald hissed as he pulled Jim's hand from his sleeve. “Just try to blend in and don't accept anything from anyone.” 

Jim took a deep breath and followed Oswald further into the room. The deeper in he got, the more out of place he felt. Everywhere he looked there were women in evening gowns and men in expensive suits sitting comfortably at dark booths and on velvet lined sofas. He paused briefly and watched as a young woman, clad in a low-cut red dress, whispered something to another girl sitting next to her. The girl, in response, pulled the other woman to her feet and led her quickly to the back of the club. 

Jim watched as the women in red was led up a narrow spiral staircase next to the bar and through one of the many black doors dotted along the second story balcony that outlined the club. He could have sworn he heard the woman giggle as the door shut gently behind her. He had a feeling that there was more that just one type of illegal activity going on in the club.

Jim finally pulled his gaze from the upper level of the club and realized that, for the first time in a long time he was surrounded by people who genuinely seemed to be enjoying themselves. A few people had drinks, others were smoking but most seemed to be simply enjoying the intimacy of the club. 

As the two approached the bar Oswald let out a loud sigh. “I don't see him anywhere.” He whispered angrily. 

“Maybe we missed him?” Jim suggested. 

Oswald shook his head and opened his mouth to reply when a woman approached suddenly and cut him off.

“Mr. Copplepot. I am glad to see you have arrived.” The woman cooed with heavily accented words. “Alanzo will see you now.” 

Oswald nodded in return and turned to follow the woman. She paused and held up her hand. “He is only willing to talk with you.” She replied, gesturing to Jim. “Your...friend will have to stay out here.”

The woman must have picked up on the nervous glance that Oswald shot Jim. She placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. “Do not worry. My girls will take very good care of him.” 

She smiled and nodded at a passing waitress. The waitress in turn hooked her arm around Jim's and guided him towards an empty booth near the bar. 

Oswald smiled politely and threw one more worried glance at Jim before following the women through a small door to their left. 

The waitress slipped Jim into a booth and walked away without another word. Jim was about to call after her when yet another waitress, nearly identical to the first, appeared beside him. She set a small metal tray on the table and smiled. 

“Something to take the edge off.” She said, gesturing to the tray. On it was a glass of champagne and two white tablets, Jim thought they looked like aspirin and silently hoped they were. He was beginning to develop a pounding headache and felt like the waitress had somehow read his mind. 

“Thank you.” He mumbled. Not wanting to seem too suspicious he tossed back the pills and downed the glass of champagne. He placed the glass back on the tray and watched as the waitress disappeared back into the crowd. 

Just blend in. Blend in. He thought repeatedly as he glanced around the room. He was the only one alone and felt awkward watching the intimate interactions of the couples around him. He returned his gaze to the second floor and was surprised when he saw the woman in red walk out of one of the doors. The girl she went in with followed her out, but not before pausing to zip up the side of her dress. 

“Don't stare.” Oswald said sounding the slightest bit amused. 

Jim huffed, embarrassed. He didn't like the fact that Oswald had managed to slip into the booth without him noticing. 

“It will be a while.” Oswald sighed. He nodded at a passing waitress and smiled when she brought him back a glass of assumedly expensive brandy a moment later. She turned to Jim next. 

“Would you like another?” She asked. Jim shook his head no and she walked away. 

“Another?” Oswald hissed, setting his glass down loudly. “I told you not to accept anything!” 

“Relax!” Jim shot back. “It was one glass of champagne…and…” He paused thinking about the small white pills. He could feel his face redden, of course they weren't aspirin, no one was handing out something as simple as pain killers in a place like this. 

“And?” 

“And nothing. Aspirin.” He lied. 

“James! I told you not to accept anything!” 

“You told me to blend in!” 

“And not to accept anything!” Oswald repeated angrily. He stuck a hand out and grabbed another waitress. She glared at him, obviously not appreciating the rude gesture. 

“I'm sorry to bother you, but what is it exactly that was given to my friend here.”

“I only gave him what I was told too.” She replied curtly. “What we usually give our new guests. Now if you don't mind...” She shot a look at her arm and Oswald released her from his grip.

“So…” Jim asked glancing quickly between Oswald and the waitress. “What exactly do they give to new guests?” 

“Not aspirin.” Oswald confirmed, he relaxed back into the booth with a coy smile. “But I promise you'll be fine. You might even have a little fun while we're here.” He smiled up at the girl again. “He'd love another.” 

The pair remained silent for some time, only speaking when the waitress returned with Jim's drink. He sipped it more slowly this time, staring at the bubbles that danced around the glass. 

“So how long is ‘a while’?” Jim finally asked. 

Oswald sighed. “I don't know exactly. I explained our...the case and he said he would need to think about the proposition.” 

Jim hummed a response and took another sip of the champagne, and then another, and then the whole glass. All at once he felt the alcohol hit him, everything was warm and the booth felt like a cloud. He let his gaze wander around the room once more but felt his eyes continuously slip back to his companion. Oswald glanced at his watch and took another sip of his own drink, pausing to lick his lips before setting the glass back down. 

“Jim.” 

Jim snapped his eyes up to meet Oswalds. “What?” 

“How are you feeling?” He asked with a smile, not one Jim had seen before. In this moment Oswald’s smile felt truly genuine. 

“I feel fine.” 

“Just fine?” Oswald pushed. 

“Yeah...a little…” Jim paused to find the right word for his current situation. He felt warm and like his whole body had fallen asleep. His fingers and toes felt tingly and his head was swimming. “Fuzzy.” He finally replied. 

Oswald laughed quietly. “Yes. That's about how I would expect you to feel.” 

“Why?” Jim asked, suddenly nervous. 

“You were smiling.” 

“I was?” 

“And staring.” 

“At...at what?” He felt a pang of fear as he realized he couldn't recall what he had just been looking at. 

“At me.” Oswald cooed. 

“Oh...OH.” Jim gasped, he felt a sharp heat rise to his cheeks and realized he was blushing. He stared down at his glass and willed the redness to go away. There was no way he had been staring at Oswald, not at his perfect lips or his thick lashes or at his…

Jim groaned and ran a hand through his hair, “What did I take?”

“Nothing to worry about. I promise you be fine.” Oswald repeated. He reached out and placed a hand atop of Jim’s. “It will all be fine.” 

Jim yanked his hand back and jumped up. “I...I’ll be right back.” He stammered. 

Oswald looked surprised, and perhaps a bit hurt, but stayed seated. He said something Jim didn't catch, the table already too far behind him to hear. 

Jim threw the door of the bathroom open and laughed happily when he realized he was alone in the room. 

“What? No attendant?” He joked to himself as he took a place along the line of sinks. He stared at himself in the mirror for a moment; his face was flushed bright red and his hair was less than neat. Despite his disheveled appearance Jim couldn't help but smile at his reflection. He would never admit it to Oswald, but Jim felt good. Extremely good for a man who had been dragged into a drug den, even if turned out to be a remarkably lavish drug den, against his better judgement.

Jim ran the tap and hoped cold water would help to calm down his ever reddening face. He dipped his hands into the frigid water and scrubbed them over his face. The water helped to calm his burning face, but as he stood at the sink with his eyes squeezed shut bright images began to flash through his mind; Oswald smiling, Oswald licking his lips, Oswald on his knees staring up at Jim through long lashes...

“Fuck.” Jim groaned as another series of inappropriate images flashed behind his eyes. He leaned over the skin and watched the water run down the drain. 

“Don’t think about it.” He ordered himself sternly. “Don’t-”

The sound of the door swinging open caused Jim to freeze. A tall man strode into the room and sent a strangely friendly smile towards Jim. As the man disappeared into a stall Jim realized with a start that he had been gone for too long. He splashed his face again and, after quickly fixing his hair, he finally turned off the faucet. He glanced at himself in the mirror one last time as he exited the room. Judging his appearance to be mostly acceptable he walked back towards the booth. As he neared, he saw another man had taken his place across from Oswald. 

Jim hovered outside the booth for an instant. A split second decision forced him to slip into the space next to Oswald. He could smell a faint hint of his companions cologne; it was sharp but incredibly pleasant. 

The strange gentleman eyed him suspiciously before returning to his conversation with Oswald. Jim didn't bother to listen, he assumed it was probably something he didn't want to know about anyway. He let his mind wander as the two continued to talk in hushed tones. He thought about the waitress in her short dress, and about the women in red and her friend, about the tall man in the bathroom, and about the inappropriate images his mind had conjured up. The images flashed through his mind again and he felt a soft and familiar tingle in the pit of his stomach. He recognized the feeling and instantly forced himself to try to pay attention to the conversation at the table; the last thing he needed was any kind of unwanted arousal. Unfortunately, the conversation went in one ear and out the other as he tried his hardest to follow along.

“Don't think about it.” Jim mumbled to himself, he saw Oswald flash him a concerned side-glance before he turned his gaze back to the stranger. 

Jim wasn't sure how time had passed before the man cleared his throat and smiled. “I'll leave you two to the rest of your evening.” He smiled as he slipped out of the booth gracefully. 

“Have fun.” He winked before sauntering back towards the front of the room.

“You need to calm down.” Oswald hissed as soon as the man was out of earshot. 

“Why? I'm fine.” Jim retorted as smoothly as he could. He felt fine, other than the fact that his mind wouldn’t stop supplying him with images of the people around him in increasingly suggestive situations.

“Why? Because your hand has been moving progressively further up my leg since you got back from the bathroom!” Oswald’s hand shot under the table and latched onto Jim’s wrist, yanking it away from his thigh. 

Jim pulled his hand from Oswald's grip and felt a hot blush form on his cheeks again. He immediately moved back across the table and tightly folded his hands in front of him. He groaned and watched as his knuckles turned white, the only sound that came from the booth was the sound of his watch clicking gently against the table. 

“I'm fine.” He repeated, mostly in an attempt to calm himself down. It wasn’t working. He wanted to run away or move in someway, sitting was only making him anxious and jittery.

“No you're not.” Oswald corrected and reached out to steady Jim’s shaking hands. 

“I...I think I just need to lie down.” Jim lied. He couldn’t imagine how that would help him at all. 

“I can actually arrange that.” Oswald nodded and pulled Jim out of the booth with him. He snaked an arm around Jim’s waist and held the swaying detective firmly on his feet. 

“Just be quiet and breath.” He whispered as he led Jim towards the bar.

“We need a room.” Oswald stated to the bartender. The man nodded and pointed to one of the black doors on the upper level. 

“Last one on the right has just been made available. Would you like anything sent up?” 

Oswald shook his head. “No, just water.” The bartender nodded and turned away from the pair. 

“Water would be...great.” Jim sighed into Oswald's hair. 

“Yes. That's why I ordered it.” 

“Right.” Jim mumbled again. 

With great difficulty Oswald managed to send Jim up the narrow staircase before him to the second level. A moment later he opened the door and ushered the detective in. 

Jim stood in the doorway and stared at the room, it was small but the mirrors behind and above the large satin covered bed made it look infinitely larger. Across from the bed was a row of four plush looking arm chairs.

“Why are there so many chairs in here?” Jim asked, perhaps a bit too loudly. 

“I'll tell you when you're older.” Oswald laughed as he shut the door behind him. Jim laughed too, he wasn't sure why but he also didn't question it. 

“Why James, I do think that's the first time you've smiled all evening.” Oswald quipped as he eased himself into one of the chairs. He watched as Jim moved around the small room, not standing in one place too long. Eventually, he seated himself on the edge of the bed and gently ran his fingers over the smooth black fabric of the sheets. 

Finally, Jim hummed in response and looked up, locking eyes with his companion. 

“Jim.” 

“Yeah?” 

“You're smiling again.” 

“Am I?” Jim laughed again and flopped back onto the bed. He propped himself on his elbows again second later. “Oswald I feel great...I feel…” 

“I believe the word you're looking for is euphoric.” 

“Exactly!” Jim smiled but didn’t look away. 

“Jim.” 

“Yeah.” 

“You're staring.” 

“I know.” 

“At me.” 

“I know.” Jim repeated. He pulled himself off the bed and moved to stand. It wasn’t an easy task as it seemed to him that the floor was made entirely of jell-o. After numerous attempts to find his footing, he strode over to the chair Oswald was sitting in. He grasped the chair's arms for support and leaned over.

Oswald pushed himself further back into the chair, obviously concerned with what Jim’s next actions might be. 

“Jim what the hell are-” he began to question. The sudden the movement of Jim's hand cut him off. His right hand moved from the arm of the chair and came to rest on Oswald’s cheek.

Oswald froze and tensed up, an action that caused Jim’s smile to falter. He moved his hand from Oswald cheek and swept his fingers under his chin, tipping Oswald’s head up and pulling his face closer to his own. 

Jim felt his eyes flutter shut as he brushed their lips together. A sharp gasp followed as Jim deepened the kiss.

“I...I think I've been wanting to do that all night.” Jim finally breathed as he stood up and strode confidently back over to the bed. He felt the most relaxed he had all night. Oswald, on the other hand, was still sitting rigidly in his chair. 

“Jim?” He whispered, his voice faltering slightly. 

“Yeah?” 

“What just happened?” 

“I kissed you.” 

“Why?” 

“Because I wanted to.” 

“Jim...” Oswald started. 

“I've always wanted to.” Jim blurted out. He pulled his gaze from the man across from him and started down at the glossy sheets, suddenly embarrassed. 

Neither man spoke for a while. Jim kept staring at the sheets and Oswald at Jim. After a moment of silence, Oswald pulled himself out of the chair and crossed the room slowly, sighing as he sat down on the bed. 

“Define ‘always’.” Oswald finally asked in a hushed whisper.

Jim laughed. “I think…” he paused. “I think, I...it was…when you... literally walked back into my life.” 

Oswald turned to look at him, the confused look on his face caused Jim to laugh again.

“I don't think you'd want to remember that night, it didn't….end well for you.” He finally explained. 

“Oh.” Oswald hummed. “After I returned to Gotham.” 

“After I told you not to.” Jim added. 

“After you told me not to.” Oswald repeated with a small smile. “Yes that wasn't...the best night for our relationship.” 

“I wish…” Jim started as he reached out to lace his fingers with Oswald’s. “That I could take it back.” He lifted his hand and brushed his lips against the back of Oswalds’ hand. 

Another minute of silence started between them. Suddenly, Jim was on his feet again, he turned and pulled Oswald up in front of him. 

“What…” Oswald started. Before he had a chance to finish his question Jim pushed him back down onto the bed. Moving quickly, Jim peeled off his jacket and tie, throwing them haphazardly behind him before climbing on top of Oswald. 

With Jim’s knees planted firmly on either side of his hips, Oswald stared up at the man above him. He let out a small sigh as Jim started a trail of quick kisses down his neck, pausing only to undo Oswald’s tie and to start on the top few buttons of his shirt. 

After undoing Oswald’s shirt to about the middle of his chest, Jim stopped. He moved to lean back over the man under him. 

“Is...this okay?” He asked. 

“Yes...” Oswald breathed. This time he was the one to bring their lips together. He wrapped his arms around Jim's neck and buried his hands in his hair, pulling him even closer. 

Moving to undo the last of Oswald’s shirt Jim left a trail of light pink bite marks after each button he undid, soon Oswald’s chest and stomach were tinted as pink as his face. 

Jim smiled and slipped his arms back around Oswald’s waist, hitching his hips higher into a more welcoming stance. He sighed as he leaned back down and pressed their bodies flush together. 

Oswald smiled and leaned back in, soon it was him who was moving more eagerly, the awkwardness and gentleness of before replaced by a more eager desire. 

Jim smiled back and led another trail of kisses down Oswald’s jaw. The first real bite caused Oswald to gasp loudly, the rest that followed each earned small moans and sighs in return.

In return Oswald’s hands slipped slowly down Jim’s chest, down his stomach and came to rest with his fingers looped through Jim’s belt. He started to undo the black leather belt that now sat dangerously low on Jim’s hips when a sharp and sudden knock on the door caused the pair to pull quickly apart. 

“What?” Oswald yelled. Jim buried his face in his neck and tried desperately to cover a laugh. 

“Alanzo would like to speak to you.” A soft voice called back. Jim recognized it as the accented woman from earlier. 

Oswald groaned and shoved Jim off to the side. “One moment!” He called as he stood. 

Jim propped himself up and watched as Oswald struggled to right his appearance. He tried desperately to smooth his suit, now wrinkled and laying all wrong on his slender frame. Another knock on the door caused him to fumble with the buttons of his shirt. 

Jim sat up and leaned forward on the bed. He gently pushed Oswald’s hands away and started readjusting the man's collar and lapels.

Oswald moved to stop Jim. “Will you be here when I get back?” He asked quietly, opting to finish fighting his shirt himself. 

Jim smiled again and pressed a gentle kiss on Oswald’s forehead. “You know it.”

**Author's Note:**

> It’s kind of like that time a friend of mine accidentally took acid....except with out the acid part.


End file.
